CalFire delays new round of state fire fee bills

CalFire told the state Board of Equalization last week not to send 2012-2013 fire prevention fee bills to property owners until further notice. The BOE had anticipated mailing out the new round of bills starting this spring.

Property owners are required to pay an annual $150 prevention fee for any property with a habitable structure, including trailers, located in a State Fire Responsibility Area. Fire prevention fee bills for the 2011-2012 fiscal year weren't received by most property owners until late 2012. While CalFire provided no explanation for the delay, it is believed to be the result of efforts to correct property owner lists before the new round of bills are mailed.

The data source used to generate last year's bills created a few problems with duplicate billings. One local property owner received three bills for her trailer residence.

CalFire spokesman Dennis Mathison admitted this wasn't unusual, especially for trailers. "CalFire pulled data from multiple sources. Since they are being tracked in two different fashions, CalFire inadvertently sent two [or more] bills."

Bills were sent to 17,746 property owners in Mendocino County, including 2,859 in the 95490 ZIP code. People living within city limits and on the Little Lake Valley floor should not receive bills. All properties in Brooktrails, Pine Mountain and the surrounding forested area are considered in the State Responsibility Area covered by the fee.

Properties on federal lands, and those within incorporated city limits, are excluded from the SRA by definition. Some large, grassy basins considered unsuitable for timberlands are excluded from the State Responsibility Area through mapping. These areas, including much of Little Lake Valley, Round Valley, Potter Valley, the Ukiah Valley basin, Redwood Valley and the Russian River valley in Hopland, are excluded due to lack of woodlands.

The SRA was established to clarify firefighting responsibilities within California and not originally as a mapping method for collecting taxes or fees.

Statewide more than 825,000 bills were sent out in 2012 and about 87,000 appeals were filed by property owners. With many original bills not distributed until December 2012, some of the appeals are still pending further investigation.

While the new round of bills is being held up, many rural property owners are still hoping the California Legislature will repeal the existing fee. California Gov. Jerry Brown has announced he intends to expand where CalFire can use the controversial $150 annual fire prevention fee introduced in 2012. Brown floated the expansion of the fee as part of his 2013/2014 budget proposal earlier this year, even as some rural legislators seek to amend or repeal the fee in its entirety.

The California Legislative Counsel's Office has already identified a series of CalFire uses of the newly assessed fees this past year it considers violations of the California Constitution.

A fee, which can be passed by the Legislature with a simple majority vote, must directly benefit the person paying the fee. A tax, which requires a two-thirds majority vote, is not required to directly benefit the individual paying the tax.

The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association filed suit last year, claiming the whole state fire prevention fee program is an illegal tax.

Brown seems intent upon using the new Democratic supermajority in the state Legislature to reaffirm the fire "fee" as a new rural tax to help fund more CalFire operations

Brown's current budget proposal takes fire fees paid in one region and allows CalFire to spend it in a nearby region.

If the fire fee is converted to a tax, the Legislature will be free to use the funds raised for any general fund purpose with a simple majority vote. This would likely remove most of the basis for the Jarvis lawsuit.

The fee is being assessed "on all property owners with one or more habitable structures within the state responsibility area." Habitable structures include single-family homes, mobile and manufactured homes, along with multi-dwelling structures. It also includes warehouses, office and government buildings, but does not include garages, barns or sheds.

The fee is $150 per habitable structure, with a $35 discount for those structures within a local fire district such as the Little Lake or Brooktrails fire districts.